


I Look Into Your Eyes (And The Sky's The Limit)

by books_entertain_the_mind



Series: A Pepperony Story [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Love Based On Disney Songs, Pepperony - Freeform, Romance, Tony Stark Has A Heart, everyone is in their twenties
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:35:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23336998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/books_entertain_the_mind/pseuds/books_entertain_the_mind
Summary: A 23-year old Tony meets 22-year old Pepper and is instantly rendered speechless.This is their love story, based on several Disney songs.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark
Series: A Pepperony Story [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1678303
Comments: 30
Kudos: 38





	1. Helpless - Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! So a while ago, I read the story, That's How You Know, written by reigningqueenofwords, which is adorable and I totally recommend you check out. 
> 
> Anyways, this idea came from a mix of that and a handful of my favorite Disney songs that I just couldn't stop imagining Pepper and Tony in the story of those songs. I recommend listening to these songs as the story is read and posted. 
> 
> Song list:  
> Helpless (Hamilton, which is going to be considered a Disney song in a year and a half)  
> That's How You Know (Enchanted)  
> Get This Right (Frozen 2 Outtake song)

Tony sighed, checking his phone for the umpteenth time since Rhodey kidnapped him from his lab before taking him to dinner. It was 8pm now, and it looked like his friend wasn’t going to release him any time soon. “Rhodey, I don’t want to go to this party, Rogers and his gang won’t want to see me tonight either. So for the sake of everyone involved, just drop me back off at my house so I can finish working.”

Rhodey shrugged, navigating the car through the neighborhood of identical houses. “Not going to happen, Tones. You’re turning into a hermit. You’re 23 for pete’s sake! You should be out at night, going to these types of parties all the time, not turning into a hermit in your basement!” Rhodey shook his head. “Besides, who cares if Rogers gets mad? It’s not his house or his party. He can shove it for all I care.”

Tony knew when he was fighting a losing battle, and this was one of them, though he wasn’t known to be stubborn for no reason. “Rhodey, I need to get this project done for my presentation on Monday. I need to make sure it’s perfect to impress the investors. You know this, man. My whole business is riding on this meeting!”

Rhodey shrugged again as he parked the car on the side of the road. They were in front of a white two-story house. You could tell by the shadows in the windows that the party was in full-swing already. They could see shadows of everyone mingling in the living room. Rhodey turned the car off and stepped out. “You and I both know your presentation is already perfect, Tony. You need to relax before Monday,” he told his friend as they both made their way up to the front door. Rhodey turned and put his hands on Tony’s shoulders, making the younger man look up at him. “Listen, just go in with me, say hi to Nat and Clint and the rest of your friends, have a couple drinks, maybe play a game or something, relax for a couple hours then we’ll go home, okay?”

Tony stared at his best friend for a moment before letting his shoulders drop in defeat. “Alright,” he sighed. “But 2 hours tops! After that I’m stealing your keys and leaving!”

Rhodey laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. “Sure, buddy. Let’s go.” He opened the door and Tony followed him in. Tony saw Natasha right away and went to her first, ignoring everyone else.

She turned and grinned when she saw her friend. “Tony!” she called, pulling him into a hug. “I’m so glad you could make it!”

Tony smiled, hugging her back. “I couldn’t miss my favorite redhead’s birthday party, could I?”

Natasha rolled her eyes. “Sure, Tony. I bet Rhodey had nothing to do with you actually leaving your evil lair, right?”

“You know what, why isn’t this place hopping? It’s time to celebrate your birthday! Turn up the music and break out the drinks!” Tony tried to change the subject knowing he had been caught. By the look of amusement sparkling in Natasha’s eyes, it didn’t work. He started pulling her to the kitchen where the countertop had been turned into a minibar.

“I’ll make sure to thank Rhodey for dragging you over.”

“He didn’t _drag_ me out here. I just didn’t know if I’d be welcome.”

Natasha accepted the drink he handed her. “Why wouldn't you be accepted? You were invited. That’s a pretty clear indication that people want you here.”

Tony glanced over at the far corner of the living room before flicking back to the drink he was making for himself.

Natasha followed his gaze and scoffed. “Really? You’re going to pull the Roger’s card? Come on Tony. We both know that you just need to ignore him and eventually he’ll get some sense knocked into him.”

Before Tony could reply, something slammed into his back, knocking the breath out of him. He turned around, ready to yell when Clint slung his arm around the shorter man. “Tony! I’m so glad you made it, man! Now the party can really start!” Clint started to drag him away, and when Tony turned back to Natasha to silently beg that she saves him from her boyfriend, she just shrugged and sipped her drink.

Clint dragged Tony further into the living room where most of the people were hanging out. Some people were dancing to the music in the background, while most were in groups of 3-4 people talking and catching up. He looked over where Steve Rogers and his buddies were huddled, though it looks like more people joined their circle. He saw the usuals, Steve, his buddies Sam and Bucky, and Wanda, although now he saw a stranger next to Wanda.

She was tall with light red, almost strawberry blonde hair, her back was to Tony, but he could tell she was wearing a crisp white blouse under what looked like one of those cardigan jacket things that he’s seen Natasha wear before. Her skinny jeans merged the look with her tan boots that she had on, and Tony knew he was already enamored and that was before she turned slightly and Tony caught sight of her face. He knew he was staring but her blue eyes and hint of freckles made him helpless to do anything else but stand and stare.

Clint noticed that Tony wasn’t following or listening, and when he saw who his friend was looking at, he smirked. It looked like Natasha was going to win their bet.

* * *

Pepper was nervous about the party tonight, but Natasha had assured her that everything was going to be fine. Her coworker invited her after Pepper made an off-hand comment about having no plans after her Saturday morning shift ended, and apparently Natasha just couldn’t handle that. She told Pepper that her friends were throwing her a birthday party and that Pepper was more than welcome to come.

So here she was. Natasha greeted her as soon as she stepped through the door and introduced her to her friend, Wanda. She was enjoying her evening so far, everyone seemed really nice, considering she had only known Natasha and her boyfriend Clint prior to this. Wanda stuck to Pepper like glue for the rest of the evening, introducing her to all the people in the house, which is how Pepper found herself talking to Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, and ‘Bucky’ Barnes, with Wanda right at her side.

She was listening as Bucky was telling a story about Steve back when they were in middle school, when Sam nudged Wanda’s arm. “Look who actually showed up,” he muttered, subtly pointing, “I didn’t think he’d come out of his workshop.”

Pepper turned just in time to catch the eyes of another stranger, who was watching their group. He was wearing what looked like a pair of well-worn and oil-stained jeans? His t-shirt looked stained but it seemed he tried to cover it up by throwing a flannel shirt over it, although it stayed unbuttoned, hindering any help it was supposed to give. He had the beginning of a goatee growing in, but Pepper had to admit he made it look good. They held eye contact until she heard Steve scoff.

Pepper turned back to see Steve roll his eyes and start grumbling. “I can’t believe Stark showed his face. He better not do anything to ruin Nat’s birthday,” the blonde growled.

Pepper turned to Sam. “Who is that? What’d he do?”

Before Sam could reply, Steve answered her first. “Stark knows what he did. And if he even thinks about doing something like that again…”

Bucky rolled his eyes at his friend. “That’s Tony Stark,” he told Pepper, gesturing to the man who was now talking to Clint. “Stevie here is mad because he thinks Tony said something to intentionally get Steve fired from his job.”

“Oh, so you’re telling me that it’s just a coincidence that right after Stark ran his mouth about inadequacies in the graphic design programs I use for work during that interview that I get fired from my job?” Steve bit out, trying not to let his voice rise.

Bucky shook his head and Sam shrugged. Wanda gave Steve a sympathetic smile, but Pepper thought the woman had a little crush on the man, so she didn’t think much about it.

“First off, we all know that Tony was talking about when the program converts designs into a blueprint file there’s a glitch, causing mess-ups in the designs themselves. That has nothing to do with you, aside from you working at a company that could be considered a rival to Tony’s,” Bucky said, and Pepper could tell that he’s had this discussion with Steve multiple times before.

“Besides, Steve,” Sam pointed out, “the place you worked released a statement saying they were doing a wave of lay-offs. You just ended up in the unlucky lottery.”

“And you have a new job that you love,” Bucky added, grinning. “So what’s the issue?”

Pepper couldn’t help but grin when she saw that the two guys had won the argument against their friend. Before she could say anything else, Natasha came over to them and looped her arm through Pepper’s. “Pepper, there’s someone I want you to meet, come on.”

Pepper let her friend drag her away and they both started laughing when they heard Bucky shout, “Good to see you too, Romanoff!”

“Who am I meeting now?” Pepper asked.

“Just another friend of mine,” Natasha said, not really answering, considering everyone here was one of Natasha’s friends. Natasha ler her over to who she recognized as Clint and was it Bruce? She thought that was his name. And the mystery guy - no, _Tony Stark_ , was there, laughing at something that Bruce said. Pepper couldn’t help but notice that he had a nice laugh.

Natasha pulled Pepper over and let her go to greet Clint with a kiss to his cheek. “Pepper, you know Clint, but have you met Bruce and Tony?”

Bruce reached out to shake Pepper’s hand. “Yeah, I think Wanda introduced us earlier. You and Nat work together, right?”

Pepper nodded, shaking his hand. “Yeah, at Honest Charlie’s.”

Clint jumped between Bruce and Tony, slinging his arms over their shoulders. “Well, lucky for you, Pep, Bruce and Tony both _love_ going to HC, so now you’ll have even more buddies coming to visit!”

Pepper chuckled, giving a shrug. “I guess so.” She turned to Tony, and couldn’t help but notice how deep his chocolate eyes were. Maybe that was just because he was staring straight at her, as if he was trying to look into her soul. She stuck out her hand, startling him from his reverie. “I’m Virginia Potts, but my friends call me Pepper.”

Tony slowly reached out to shake her hand. “I’m-” he cleared his throat, “I’m Tony. Tony Stark.”

She smiled. “Nice to meet you, Tony.”

Tony didn’t know what was happening. The second he laid eyes on the new girl, it was like his brain was bound, gagged and shoved in a closet. Nothing was working in his mind. Clint had to drag him over to Bruce, where his science buddy carried most of the conversation, his own replies coming out more from autopilot than anything else. He glanced around to try and find Rhodey, but he caught his friend talking with Carol earlier and he had no idea where they snuck off too.

Then Natasha brought the new girl over to him, Clint, and Bruce, _that evil woman_. He caught Clint and Natasha smirking at each other, and he realized his shut down brain might be more noticeable than he thought, considering it was _him_. The person in their group whose mind _never_ shut up.

He couldn’t do anything about it though. He felt helpless. He couldn’t think, couldn’t process anything. His thoughts felt like they were moving in jello. He felt like his whole body had moved into being in slow-motion, and he didn’t know why. He only knew it started with _her_.

He saw her stick her hand and watched her mouth move, forming words. He faintly heard her say her name and to call her Pepper. _Pepper_ , he thought, _is it because of her freckles? They look like someone peppered them all over her face. Wait, why am I just staring at her face? Rhodey said that’s rude, don’t do that! She introduced herself, so tell her our name, you idiot! Talk!_

He forced his arm to move, sharking her hand back, and he felt his own mouth start to move, working on autopilot too. He blinked and gave a cough, felt like his brain kickstart again _thank goodness_ , and he found himself staring into her blue eyes. “I’m Tony,” he finally told her, “Tony Stark.”

Any mental progress he made, melted again as soon as he saw her smile. Where’s Rhodey? He needs to come rescue him before Tony made a fool of himself. He blinked and saw her still smiling at him. _I’m screwed._


	2. Helpless Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter! We're still on the song 'Helpless' from Hamilton for this chapter. The response to this has been awesome so far! I'm super grateful and glad y'all enjoy this so far!

Tony stood in their little circle for a few more minutes, before he caught sight of Rhodey in the kitchen. He gave an excuse to leave and booked it to his best friend.

“Rhodey!” Tony called, stopping right before he ran into the other man. “Rhodey, you have to help me.”

“What’s the matter?” Rhodey asked, looking around in concern.

“There’s this girl - a new friend of Nat’s - you gotta help me man, every time I see her, I feel my brain shut down. I don’t know what’s going on!”

Rhodey smiled, trying not to laugh, knowing that it would make Tony more agitated. “Oh, Tones,” he said, throwing his arm around his friend. “Sounds like you’ve got a crush, buddy.”

Tony looked baffled. “That can’t be true! I’ve liked people before and nothing like this has happened!” He stopped, his eyes growing wide. “Maybe I’m developing a disease in my brain. A tumor or something. That has to be it!” He turned and grabbed Rhodey’s jacket. “We gotta go so I can get that checked out. Now!”

This time, Rhodey didn’t hold back his laughter. “Tony, calm down! Before we go waking up every doctor in the area, answer a couple questions for me, okay?”

Tony nodded, then looked around. He caught Clint looking over towards them. That wouldn’t have been a worry, but the man was still next to Natasha, Bruce, _and Pepper_. “Can we go somewhere maybe more private?”

Rhodey followed his gaze, spotting Clint, their friends and who he assumed was the new girl. “Come on, we’ll go upstairs.” He led Tony around the back side of the kitchen to the stairs, going up and moving until they found the spare bedroom at the end of the hall. He sat Tony on the bed and pulled up the spare desk chair.

“Okay,” he started, “so you said you saw this new friend of Nat’s -”

“Her name’s Pepper.”

“Fine, you saw Pepper and you said your brain shut down? How so?”

“I feel like everything’s in slow motion. All of a sudden, I’m moving through jello and can’t comprehend what’s going on! My thoughts aren’t racing like normal, they’re frozen! I’m moving in a slow version of autopilot and it’s horrible!” Tony let himself flop backwards into the bed. He grabbed a pillow and covered his face. “Why’s my brain broken, Rhodey?”

Tony sat up and glared, pointed at Rhodey. “This is your fault! You dragged me out to this party when I could have been double checking my presentation for Monday. Now my brain’s broken and I don’t know how to fix it.”

Rhodey laughed, ignoring Tony’s shout of indignation. “Tone’s what’s two hundred nintey-seven thousand, six hundred and forty-five divided by four hundred sixty-nine then multiplied by 15?”

Tony blinked. “Nine thousand, five hundred and nineteen and a half, obviously. I don’t understand what that has to do with thi-”

“Tones, that’s proof that your brain isn’t broken,” Rhodey laughed, checking the math on his phone. “No one else can beat a calculator in math. You’re _fine_.”

Tony huffed and flopped down again. “Then what’s wrong with me?” he whined.

“Did you feel your heart beating a little faster than normal?”

Tony shrugged.

“Did your palms feel sweaty or clammy?”

“A little bit.”

“Did it almost feel hard to breathe when you looked at Pepper?”

“Maybe…”

Rhodey just smiled and shook his head. “I’m sorry to tell you buddy, but it sounds like you got hit _hard_ with Cupid’s arrow.”

Tony scoffed. “Please, that’s not a thing.”

Rhodey shrugged. “Fine, prove me wrong by going and talking to her and then telling me you aren’t affected only by Pepper.”

Tony jumped up from the bed. “Fine! I will! And when you’re proven wrong, can we go home?”

Rhodey followed his friend out of the bed room. “Sure man, if I’m wrong, we’ll go home early.”

Tony made his way back downstairs and quickly found Pepper. Natasha had moved on to talk to other people, but Clint and Bruce stayed and were still talking to Pepper. He took a deep breath and made his way back over to them. “Hey guys,” he said as he joined their little huddle. “Sorry about that, I had to double check with Rhodey about when he was planning on heading out.”

Clint raised an eyebrow, seeing right through his excuse. Bruce didn’t appear fooled either, but Pepper just smiled. “Did you get everything figured out then?”

Tony couldn’t help but smile at her, and Pepper felt a flutter in her chest when she saw it. _He has a great smile_ , she thought.

“I did. Rhodey wanted to leave, but I convinced him to stay and socialize,” Tony told her.

This time, neither Clint nor Bruce could hold in their snorts of laughter.

“Please Tony,” Clint said. “We all know that out of the two of you, Rhodey is going to be the one convincing _you_ to stay and socialize.”

“Yeah man,” Bruce chimed in. “If we didn’t force you outside once in a while, you’d turn into a hermit in your lab.”

Pepper couldn’t help but laugh at that, which caused Tony to look up at her and give a small smile before rolling his eyes. “I think you guys are over exaggerating.”

Clint and Brice glanced at each other before they shook their heads. “Nope,” they said in unison.

Before Tony could argue more, Betty came over and pulled at Bruce, convincing him to go dance with her. Clint watched him leave then turned back to Tony and Pepper. “Nat’s going to kill me if I don’t go find her soon, so I’m going to go look for her.” Without another word, the man left, leaving Tony and Pepper by themselves in the middle of the house full of their friends.

Pepper gave Tony another smile and Tony felt his heart skip a beat. He didn’t want to prove Rhodey right, but he knew deep down that his older friend was once again right about the situation. He hated knowing how much Rhodey would lord it over him, but at the moment, he would take a million ‘I told you so’s to have Pepper keep smiling at him.

“So what do you have a lab for?”

Tony was brought out of his thoughts by Pepper’s question. “Uh, it’s more of a workshop, but they all call me an evil scientist so they’ve dubbed my workspace my evil lab.” At Pepper’s confused gaze, he realized he never answered the question. “Um, I mean, I’m an inventor. I’m starting a tech company, and I invent all the products.”

“What made you want to do that?”

Tony shrugged. “When my dad was a little older than me, he had a really successful weapons company, but went bankrupt a little after the war. He never really recovered, even though he slowly grew his company again. I was supposed to take it over, but his business partner bought him out before I was old enough. He changed the name and everything. Now that I’m out of college, my dad told me to chase my own business dreams instead of his. So with his help, I now own the start-up business, Stark Industries.”

Pepper nodded. “That sounds really cool! What do you invent?”

Tony looked down for a moment, trying to hide his blush. Even though he was starting to become accustomed to answering questions from people with a company that is quickly growing popular enough to require interviews, he still felt weird about talking to people about his life. “For SI, it’s a lot of tech like phones and computers and stuff, as well as a lot of brand new clean energy technology. I also really like building robots, but that’s just for fun.”

Pepper’s eyes shined with interest. “That seriously sounds so cool. You have to be incredibly smart to do all that.”

This time Tony couldn’t hide his ears turning pink. “Um, I mean, kind of,” Tony shrugged, trying to brush his intellect off as nonchalant. He cleared his throat. “So what do you do again? I don’t think I caught that when Nat introduced you.”

Pepper tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, Tony’s eyes following the movement. “I work with Natasha at Honest Charlie’s. We work a lot of the same shifts.”

Tony nodded. He’s surprised he hasn’t seen her before, as much as Bruce and he spends time at the coffee shop. Although he’s always in work mode when he’s there, so he never really focuses on anything but that, and it’s always Natasha that brings their drinks over for them, so she has a few moments with her friends before going back to work.

“But that can’t be the only thing you _want_ to do, right? What do you aspire to be doing?”

Pepper shrugged. “I don’t really know yet. I went to school for business and want to do something with business management, but I don’t know what yet. I haven’t had a lot of opportunities post-college to help me figure that out.”

Tony nodded. “I understand. I always wanted to be a mechanic growing up. I just wanted to spend my days fixing cars and building robots.”

“But now you’re a business owner and inventor?”

Tony laughed, and shrugged. “Exactly. Who knows what life is going to throw at us. I suggest we just buckle up and go along for the ride.”

Pepper nodded. “Sounds like wise advice.”

Tony grinned and motioned to the couch. “Uh, do you want to maybe continue this conversation over there? I can grab drinks for us.”

Pepper smiled and nodded, tucking away another piece of hair. “Sure, I’d like that.” Pepper gave Tony her drink preference, and they parted ways for a moment. Tony caught Rhodey’s eye while he was in the kitchen, and he just rolled his eyes when he saw his friend’s triumphant smirk. Tony returned to the couch with both of their drinks and handed Pepper hers. “So, you’ve heard my life story. What’s your, Miss Pepper Potts?”

The two of them talked for the rest of the evening, occasionally being interrupted by someone joining in for a little while, but they rarely strayed from each other’s side for the rest of the night. By the time Rhodey was actually ready to leave, he had to drag Tony away.

“I had a great time tonight,” he told Pepper after he told Rhodey to wait in the car. Pepper decided to leave too, and Tony offered to walk her to her car.

Pepper grinned, and looked down at her shoes. “I had a great time too, Tony. It was so nice to meet you.”

Tony glanced to his side, watching her walk next to him. “Maybe…. Maybe we could hang out after one of your shifts or something? We could get lunch? Or dinner?”

Pepper looked back up at him. She was surprised by his question. Yes, she spent the whole night with him instead of Natasha, and yes, she found him charming and even attractive, but she had no idea if he was just being nice by being with her the whole time. She felt a warm feeling grow in her stomach at the idea of him potentially reciprocating her growing feelings.

“I’d really like that,” she whispered, looking back down at her feet instead of his face.

Tony broke into a wide grin. _She said yes!_ “Um, could I maybe, I mean, we could, uh -we could exchange numbers? That way we can set up a day and time?”

Pepper just nodded, trying to stop her smile from growing. She pulled out her phone and exchanged it with his. They both entered their numbers, and handed their phones back. At this point, they were at Pepper’s car. “Well,” she said, not knowing where to go from there. “I had fun tonight, and I guess I’ll see you soon?”

Tony opened her door for her then stepped back. He nodded. “Yeah, I’ll see you soon. Bye Pepper.”

She smiled up at him. “Bye Tony.” She shut her door and drove off, back to her apartment.

Tony made his way over to Rhodey’s car and slid into the passenger seat without saying anything. They drove off in silence, but he knew his friend and could tell Rhodey was about to burst. “Don’t say a word. You were right, okay?”

Rhodey laughed, shaking his head. “I won’t say I told you so, but I told you so.”

Tony rolled his eyes, but didn’t say anything else. He was too busy already counting down to when he’d see Pepper again.


	3. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. I got let go from my dream job and it has kind of taken all my motivation and creativity away for a bit. I've also never been let go or fired from a job and I don't like the feeling it's given me. 
> 
> Anyways, here's the next part of our little love story! There isn't a song to go to this part, but we'll be moving into 'That's How You Know' from Enchanted really soon! I hope you enjoy it!

That Monday, Pepper spent her whole shift trying to fend off Natasha’s questions. “Natasha, I don’t know what to tell you! Yes, we talked, yes I enjoyed it, but nothing’s going to happen. I enjoyed talking to all of your friends,” she finally huffed as she cleaned the counter from scattered coffee stains and leftover ground beans.

Natasha rolled her eyes. “You may have enjoyed meeting everyone but you spent the entire time with Tony! That has to mean something, right? Don’t you think he’s cute?”

Pepper shook her head. “Why are you so adamant that Tony and I get together? He seems nice, and sure he’s pretty cute but that doesn’t mean anything. I doubt he likes me anyways.”

Natasha scoffed. “Please, he looked like a love-sick puppy the entire time he was around you. If you couldn’t see that, you must be blind. Have you guys talked since Saturday night?”

Pepper didn’t want to answer her. They had in fact talked several times since the party. Tony texted her the next day, complaining that Rhodey was still keeping him from his workshop. Then this morning, she wished him good luck before his meeting he had, because she remembered him talking about how important it was for his business. Now that she thought about it, she’d have to ask him how it went. She hoped it went as well as Tony was hoping it would.

“I don’t see how that’s important,” Pepper told Natasha, turning to restock the cups while they were in a lull.

Natasha grinned. “So that means you have! Why are you even trying to deny this! You both like each other! Just accept it, Pepper.”

Pepper groaned. She closed her eyes and counted to ten, before she turned to Natasha. “Fine! I like Tony. He’s sweet and cute and I think I might actually really like him. Are you happy now, Natasha?”

“Well, I don’t know how Natasha feels, but I’m pretty happy to hear that.”

Pepper whipped around and saw Tony leaning against the counter, smirking. She couldn’t help the blush that rose in her cheeks. “Tony! I didn’t hear you come in!”

Tony shrugged. “That’s alright. It sounded like a pretty important conversation you were having.”

Pepper heard Natasha snigger, but when she turned to glare at her friend, the woman had turned away to help another customer. She turned back to Tony, who gave her a small smile. She started talking before he could bring up what he overheard. If she just ignored it, maybe he wouldn’t address it. “Um, so how did your big meeting go?”

Tony’s smile grew. “It went well. Everyone seemed impressed with my ideas and plans for where to bring the company. No one gave me a definite answer,” he shrugged, “but that’s not uncommon for business deals like this. Hopefully I’ll hear some good news from several of the investors later this week.”

Pepper smiled. “That’s great, Tony! And before my manager comes over, are you going to order anything?”

Tony nodded. “Sure, we don’t want you to get in trouble now.” He browsed the menu for a moment. “I’ll take a 16 ounce Nutty.”

Pepper nodded, entering his order into the computer. “Going for something sweet today?”

“I’ve already had my dose of sweetness, just talking to you.”

Pepper paused and raised an eyebrow. “That was horrible.”

Tony scrunched his nose and nodded. “I know. I regretted it as soon as it came out of my mouth.”

Pepper just smiled and finished putting his order in. “Alright, that’ll be $6.50, and I’ll have it out soon.”

“I look forward to it,” he said as he paid. He moved to a small table by the windows and watched Pepper work, making the different orders. He couldn’t believe what he heard earlier! Natasha saw him come in, and Tony knew that she pushed Pepper to say that she liked him, but he didn’t think she’d actually lie to get Natasha to stop. Maybe his plan to ask Pepper out on a date might actually work.

He pulled his laptop out and opened a random file to appear busy and look like a weirdo who watched the baristas make coffee all day. He ended up so engrossed in his work that he didn’t notice when Pepper walked over with his drink. Tony jumped when a cup was set on the table in front of his face. He looked up and smiled when he saw that it was Pepper that delivered his coffee.

“Table-side service,” he joked, accepting the drink. “I like it.”

Pepper chuckled. “Don’t get used to it. Natasha said you were in your work mode and wouldn’t hear your name being called.”

Tony took a drink and sighed. He loved coffee, but thoroughly enjoyed the different specialty drinks at Honest Charlie’s, the Nutty being one of his favorites. He gave Pepper a smirk. “If it gets you to visit me, I’ll ignore my name all the time.” He gestured to the empty chair at his table. “Please, take a seat. Relax for a moment.”

Pepper rolled her eyes, but her smile took any heat away from the action. “As much as I’d love to, I have to get back to work before my manager sees me.”

Tony straightened up, catching her hand before Pepper could walk away. “Then what time do you get off? Maybe you can join me then?”

Pepper couldn’t believe it. Was he actually asking her out? Was Natasha right, and Tony really did like her the same way? She didn’t try to pull her hand out of Tony’s, but pretended to think over his offer. “Well, I don’t know if I want to spend my free time in the coffee shop where I work…”

By this point, Tony jumped out of his seat, trying not to let the excitement show too much. “Well, we can go somewhere else! Anywhere, really.”

Pepper couldn’t hide her smile. “I finish my shift at 6:30. How about you come back then? We can go wherever you decide.”

Tony grinned and nodded. “Okay, 6:30 sounds good. Yeah.”

Pepper tried not to laugh. She gave a slight tug on her hand. “I kind of need this to get back to work.”

Tony looked down and saw he was still holding her hand. He quickly let go, and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. It was his turn to blush now. “Yeah,” he chuckled, “sorry about that.”

Pepper just shrugged. “I’m not saying I’m opposed, just not until after work.”

Tony nodded again. He just couldn’t help himself. He was just enamoured by her and he wasn’t afraid to admit it, _shut it Rhodey_. “So, I’ll pick you up here, at 6:30?”

Pepper smiled. “Sure, I’ll see you then.” She turned and started back toward the front counter. “Bye, Tony,” she called over her shoulder.

Tony just waved, unable to do anything else. The smile was frozen on his face and he couldn’t stop the excitement coursing through his veins. He saw Natasha give him a look, but he didn’t do anything. He just packed up his laptop and rushed out to find Rhodey. He didn’t care if his friend was supposed to be working, or the fact that technically _he_ should be working right now, he had a date to plan!

* * *

Tony burst through the door and stumbled into Rhodey’s office. “Rhodey!” He called, completely ignoring how startled his friend is. “Rhodey! I need advice, and I need it now! I’m going out with Pepper tonight and I only have 3 hours and 47 minutes until I pick her up and I have no idea what to do. I need to impress her but I don’t want to go over the top, cause it is only the first date, and -”

“Tones!” Rhodey cut his friend off before the genius could continue his anxious rambling. “Calm down, man. First things first, why are you here? I’m working right now, and you should be too!”

Tony shrugged. “The only thing on my schedule was my presentation this morning, but that’s besides the point.” He moved closer to Rhodey and started rummaging through the desk drawers. “Do you still have your bag of snacks hidden here? I’m starving.” He gave a cry of victory when he saw the bag full of candy and granola bars, grabbing it before Rhodey could stop him. He slumped down in the chair across from his friend and took a bite of one of the candies bars. He really needed to remember to eat during the day. “So will you help me?”

Rhodey just watched his friend. He knew his friend was eccentric and forgot people’s schedules sometimes, but he thought he’d broken Tony of the habit of bursting into office during the work day. “Even if you aren’t working the rest of the day, _I’m_ still on the clock until 5pm, so I need to get back to my work, if you don’t mind.”

Tony scoffed. “Rhodes, you never have work to finish after lunch on Mondays, stop lying to yourself. You’re not helping anyone and it’s unbecoming.”

Rhodey rolled his eyes. Tony wasn’t wrong, but he still didn’t like being called out like that. “ _You’re_ unbecoming,” he muttered, filing some paperwork away.

Tony just laughed and tossed another candy bar at him. “Calm down, honeybear, don’t hurt yourself. This security company wouldn’t know what to do without you.”

“Uh huh. Either way, I have things I need to do, meaning you need to leave.”

Tony shook his head. “You haven’t helped me yet.”

Rhodey closed his eyes and took a breath. He loved Tony. He just had to remind himself of that fact occasionally. “What am I helping you with?”

Tony’s grin grew and he started bouncing in his seat, unable to keep still from the excitement coursing through his veins. “I have a date with Pepper tonight, but I don’t know what to do for it!”

Rhodey couldn’t help but smile. No matter how annoyed he was with his friend, he knew this was big for Tony. “Why don’t you do what you normally do for first dates? Wine and dine her.”

Tony shook his head. “This is _Pepper_ though. It’s different with her, I can feel it.” He didn’t know why but he just felt deep down that Pepper could possibly be it for him. He certainly hoped so, and he really hoped he wouldn’t blow it with her. “It has to be different this time Rhodes.”

Tony has called him by his last name twice since he walked in, so Rhodey knew his friend was serious. “Okay, okay. Did you have any ideas to start from?”

Tony shrugged. “I was thinking about starting with dinner because she’ll have just finished her shift at work, so I’m assuming she’ll be hungry.”

Rhodey nodded. “Alright, so start there. Are you picking her up from her work or her home?”

“Work.”

“Okay, so don’t go somewhere really fancy. She’ll feel underdressed and probably exhausted in her work uniform. Go for something casual.”

Tony nodded. “Okay, casual dinner. What next?”

Rhodey huffed. “I don’t know, man. This is your date, not mine! You’ve been talking to her all weekend, what do _you_ think you should do?”

Tony groaned and sunk into his chair. “That’s why I’m asking you! I have no idea what I should do.”

“Then just play it by ear,” Rhodey shrugged. “She’ll probably be tired from working all day, so she might only be able to handle dinner. Just see where the evening takes you.”

Tony stayed in the chair, thinking. He wanted the evening to be perfect. He had no idea what he should plan, but he knew he couldn’t mess it up. Maybe playing it by ear was the smartest move. Pepper _had_ been working all day. He didn’t want to exhaust her and make her not want to spend time with him in the long run. Tony stared up at the ceiling and sighed. “I guess you’re right.”

“Of course I am,” Rhodey shot back, not even looking up from the paperwork he started going through.

Tony could tell that Rhodey had reached the end of his patience with Tony, so he decided to take his leave. He stood up and gave an exaggerated stretch, which Rhodey also ignored. He huffed. “Fine, fine. I can tell when I’m not wanted. I’ll go figure this out on my own.”

“You do that,” Rhodey absentmindedly responded, still not looking up from his paperwork.

Tony just rolled his eyes and finally left his friend’s office. As he walked out onto the sidewalk, he passed a small tulip bush. It caught his eye and he smiled, an idea slowly growing in his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What'd you think? First date is coming up next! Also, You know the scene in the pilot episode of Psych, where Shawn busts into Gus's office and annoys him until he agrees to work the case? That was how I pictured Tony barging into Rhodey's office at his security firm he works at in this fic. 
> 
> I need your help though. What is a song that you think Tony would dedicate to Pepper? Give me your ideas, cause I have none at the moment, haha


	4. First Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the first date! I couldn't find a Disney song that worked with first dates, so there isn't really a soundtrack to this chapter, but we'll get started on the song That's How You Know in the next chapter!
> 
> Also, if anyone has any ideas on a great song that you think Tony would dedicate to Pepper (and it can be any type or genre of song for this one) let me know! It might be used in the next two chapters!

Pepper was cleaning off the counter when she heard the front door open. She checked her watch and saw that it was 6pm, then looked up and smiled when she saw that it was Tony. He walked over to her and matched her smile.

“Hey stranger,” she said, turning to finish her last task before she was able to clock out for the day.

Tony’s grin grew as he kept one hand behind his back, very obviously hiding something from her. “Are you ready for the best night of your life?”

Pepper looked back up at him, an eyebrow raised. “Best night of my life? You’re awfully confident, aren’t you?”

Tony just shrugged. “What can I say? I know how to plan a date.”

“You mean you bugged Rhodey until he gave you an idea,” Natasha cut in, causing Pepper to laugh.

Tony’s hand flew to his chest. “Me?” He asked in feigned offense, “I would never!”

Natasha just rolled her eyes. “Exactly like you convincing Rhodey to stay at my house longer, right?”

Tony just smiled. “See, I knew you understood me, Nat.”

Pepper could stop giggling. It was apparent that those two knew each other very well, their bickering reminded her of a brother and sister. Natasha caught her eye and gestured to Tony. “I’m here to take over, go head out with Romeo over there.”

Pepper gave her friend a grateful look and passed the rustic apron over to Natasha. “Thanks, Nat. I’ll see you tomorrow? We’re working the same shift, right?”

Natasha nodded, but just shooed Pepper out from behind the counter. “Yes, now go! Clock out and enjoy your date!”

“Thank you!” She turned to Tony who was waiting for her by the door, bouncing excitedly on his toes. As soon as she reached him, he thrusted a bouquet of flowers at her. It was a bouquet of tulips, a mix of blood red and what looked like what appeared to be a dark orange colored type, but upon closer inspection, Pepper saw that the outside of the petals were red but inside the flower, they were yellow with wisps of red running through the bright color. She held them and looked up at Tony. “These are beautiful, Tony! I love them!”

Tony just smiled. He couldn’t think to do anything else. He already felt giddy at just the fact that she was excited to go on a date with him, now she said she loved the flowers he picked for her! It’s only been ten minutes and he already felt like a success. He was also nervous the rest of the evening wouldn’t go as well, if this was how great it’s started. He was scared that something was bound to go wrong. All he could do was hope that everything would work out.

Instead of vocalizing any of this, he simply held his arm out for Pepper. “Are you ready to go on the best date of your life?”

Pepper laughed, making Tony’s heart flutter, and linked her arm with his. “Lead the way, good sir.”

Tony led her out to his car, opening the passenger side for her to enter first before running to the driver’s side and sliding into the car. He gave her a grin and started the drive to the restaurant he picked. It wasn’t anything fancy like he normally went to, but it was nicer than Burger King.

They were seated quickly and found themselves with water and menus on the table between them. Pepper was grateful that Tony hadn’t brought her somewhere too nice, otherwise she would have felt massively underdressed after just finishing work, plus she really enjoyed the food here.

They ordered appetizers, and made small talk while they waited for their server to come back for their main dishes. Any time Tony was able to get Pepper to laugh, he couldn’t help but feel that flutter in his chest. He loved watching her eyes light up and felt a flash of success every time he saw her give him the smile that completely covered her face, reaching her eyes, causing adorable crinkles in the corners of her eyes. He couldn’t take her eyes off her, the entire time. He was hooked.

They ate their dinner, telling each other stories of their childhoods, sharing funny memories from college, talking about their dreams and goals they wish to achieve in life. Neither of them had ever felt so comfortable with someone they had only met days ago. Tony ordered a small dessert that they both shared, and all too soon, the check had been paid and Tony was opening the door for Pepper to step into the car. Once he joined her, they sat for a moment, still in the parking lot.

“I had a lot of fun tonight,” Tony started, risking a glance to his right.

Pepper smiled and tucked some loose hair behind her ear. “I did too. I’m glad you asked me out,” she quietly added.

Tony grinned. “If you’re not too tired,” he started, a little nervous to ask, “we could maybe keep going?”

Pepper looked over, confused. “What do you mean?”

Tony gave a nervous chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck. “I was thinking we could head over to my place?” At Pepper’s raised eyebrow, he hastily continued. “I mean, I was going to drop you off at your car and you could meet me at my house, but- but only if you wanted to! I wasn’t suggesting or, or trying to force you to do any-”

“Tony,” Pepper interrupted, trying to swallow the laughter she felt bubbling up inside her. “I’d very much enjoy continuing tonight, but,” Pepper continued before Tony opened his mouth, “I have a rule that I don’t sleep with someone on the first date.”

Tony nodded emphatically. “Of course, I- I wasn’t implying that we’d- I, I mean, of course. I understand and respect your decision.”

Pepper just smiled at Tony’s nervous rambling. She thought he looked cute when he looked flustered. “You’re fine, Tony,” she reassured him, “I’m just making sure we’re both on the same page here.”

They spent the rest of the car ride back to the coffee shop trading songs to listen too. Pepper being unafraid to sing out with whatever was playing, whereas Tony only grew brave enough to mumble along when a favorite song of his came on. He didn’t mind though, because he was just enjoying the opportunity to see Pepper relaxed and enjoying herself. She also had a wonderful voice, or at least Tony thought so.

Tony dropped her off right next to her car, texted her his address, and watched to make sure Pepper actually made it into her car before driving off to his house. The entire way there, he prayed that she’d actually show up. As soon as he arrived home, he did a quick run around to make sure everything was picked up and nothing looked messy. He double checked that there were different drinks in his fridge and a variety of snacks pulled out and waiting on the counter. Once he was sure everything was ready, all he could do was wait.

Tony couldn’t have been more excited in his life when he heard a knock at his front door. He ran over, took a deep breath to calm himself, then opened the door to find Pepper waiting for him on the other side.

“Hi,” he breathed, trying not to seem overly excited.

Pepper chuckled. “Hello.” She gestured to the door. “Um, could I come in?”

Tony jumped and moved out of the way, letting her walk into his house. “Oh! Sorry, of course! Come on in.” He followed her out of the entryway and pointed her in the direction of the living room. “Do you want anything to drink? I have beer and wine. Or water, in case you don’t want anything alcoholic.”

Pepper slipped her shoes off relaxed onto the couch. “Whatever you’re having will be fine with me.”

Tony nodded and ran into his kitchen. He opened the fridge and quickly decided on the wine over the beer. He grabbed the bottle, two glasses, and quickly made his way back to the living. He joined Pepper on the couch and set the glasses and wine down on the coffee table in front of them, so he could open the bottle and pour them both a glass. He handed Pepper her glass with a smile, and leaned back to relax into the couch, still celebrating that she actually showed up.

The rest of the evening went great, in Tony’s opinion. Pepper thought so too, but she wasn’t about to go and tell everyone. Natasha was already going to be hounding her for details the moment she would arrive for work.

The couple spent the evening sipping wine and just talking. Tony threw some music on to play as background noise, but neither of them would be able to say what songs had been playing. They both spent the whole night with their focus entirely fixed on the other person. They talked more about their pasts, shared a couple more stories from high school and college, and even pulled out the old games like 21 Questions and Truth or Dare, after the wine sunk in a little more. Surprisingly, they stuck to more childish dares, rather than doing anything to risk the atmosphere of warmth and comfort they created throughout the night.

Pepper broke off whatever truth she was telling Tony when her phone buzzed. “Holy crap,” she exclaimed, “it’s already 11pm! I need to go home.” She swayed a bit when she stood up from the couch, but started to gather her things.

Tony stood up with her and held an arm out. “Pepper, you’re drunk. I can’t let you drive like this!”

Pepper just shook her head. “I’ll be fine, Tony,” she said, a slight slur in her voice.

Tony moved forward, grabbing her arm to stop her movement. She looked up at him, and Tony could see her gaze was slightly hazed over from the amount of wine they drank. They went through almost two full bottles. “It wouldn’t be right if I let you drive home after how much we’ve both drank. What if something happened to you? It’d be all my fault.”

“I’m a grown woman,” Pepper replied, trying to shake his hold off. The alcohol definitely affected her though, because she barely made her arm wiggle, no matter how much she tried to get it to move.

She started giggle, to which Tony just took as further proof of her inability to drive. He put both arms on her shoulders and started guiding her back to his room. “Come on, you can take my bed, sleep off the alcohol and I’ll make sure you get to work tomorrow.”

He guided her under the covers and made sure to leave some aspirin and a glass of water on the bedside table closest to her. Tony watched her snuggle into his bed and he couldn’t help but smile at how adorable she looked. At that moment, he knew that he would be okay with always seeing Pepper snuggling in his bed.

“Get some sleep,” he whispered, moving a stray hair from her forehead. “You’ll feel better in the morning.”

He stood up and turned to leave, but Pepper reached out and grabbed his arm. “Where’re you going to sleep?” She mumbled, fighting sleep as hard as she could.

Tony just chuckled and guided her arm back under the covers. “Don’t worry about me, darling. I’m sleeping on the couch tonight. You take the comfy bed.” Feeling a bit of liquid courage still running through his veins, he leaned down and gave her a soft and slow kiss on the cheek. “Good night,” he whispered.

Pepper stared at him until she couldn’t keep her eyes open any more. “G’nigh’ ‘Ony,” she mumbled. The last thing she remembered was hearing his deep and warm chuckle as he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. She sighed and snuggled deeper into the bed, taking a deep breath and relaxing into sleep, surrounded by the comforting smell that was just _Tony._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think? Let me know in the comments below! 
> 
> And the tulips that Tony brings are an actual color. just google red and yellow tulips. They look amazing! And tulips symbolize passionate and intense love for someone so I thought that'd be nice representation for our favorite couple.
> 
> And again, if anyone has any ideas on a great song that you think Tony would dedicate to Pepper please let me know! I'm not the best at dedication songs and most people have a wider knowledge of songs than me, so I'm open to any and all suggestions! (You know why if you know the lyrics to the next song in our story)
> 
> Have a great day!


	5. That's How You Know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, I wanna apologize for the 2 month wait between chapters. The trip I went on back in May was needed as kind of a reset and after that, I decided to use this quarantine and season of unemployment to focus on making myself better as a person. Things like therapy, recovery from an addiction, and focusing more on building a stronger relationship with God. In all of that, I decided to take a brief break from all my fics, hence the unintentional 2-month hiatus.
> 
> I have loved the feedback and comments though! They've all been great to read as I've started writing again and I'm excited for what's to come!
> 
> With all of that said, after a way too long of a wait.... onto the next chapter!

That night was the beginning of the best relationship both Tony and Pepper ever had. That next morning, Pepper woke up to a headache, but saw the aspirin and water next to her, she couldn’t help but smile. When she left the bedroom later, after freshening up in the bathroom, she found Tony standing in the kitchen with only sweatpants on, making her eggs and bacon.

They ate breakfast and he made sure she had everything she needed before letting her head back to her apartment so she could get ready for work that afternoon. She left his house with a kiss to her cheek and a promise of a second date. Natasha had questioned her relentlessly for information, which Pepper answered some, but spent most of their shift just giving her friend shrugs and knowing smiles.

Tony continued to do his best to woo Pepper. He texted her constantly, showed up for coffee during as many of her shifts as he could and inevitably distracted her at the counter every single time to the point that her boss, a man by the name of Happy, would wait for the young genius to walk through the doors and just point to a seat.

The older man said Tony ordered the same thing enough times that he didn’t even have to order any more, and just started a running tab that the inventor paid once a week. Pepper always tried to be the one to bring the coffee to Tony though, causing him to smirk and laugh when they’d hear Happy grumbling about love-sick puppies behind the counter.

* * *

Two months later, things were progressing pretty well, in Pepper’s opinion. Her and Tony seemed to really hit it off, meaning Nat seemed extra smug whenever she saw them together. Speaking of her co-worker that has quickly become one of her closest friends, Pepper and Natasha were spending one of their rare mutual day-offs hanging out at Natasha’s house.

Several of Natasha’s other friends were there too, some Pepper recognized, like Wanda and Betty, but there were some she didn’t remember meeting, like Hope and Carol. Apparently Carol had been at Natasha’s party but spent most of it with Tony’s friend Rhodey, and Hope had been out of town with her boyfriend Scott.

All six ladies were relaxing on the couch, drinking wine and talking about their boyfriends or other cute guys when Pepper felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out and smiled when she saw that Tony had sent her a text. She opened it and saw that it was a picture of Tony holding a little black lab puppy close, kissing it’s head. She smiled even more when she read the comment he added.

_Tony:_  
_This level of adorableness should be illegal_  
_The puppy is cute too._

Pepper laughed when she read the texts, causing Natasha to look over at her. “And what about you, love bird? Was that your man talking to you?”

Pepper blushed but couldn’t deny it. Instead she just shrugged. “Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t. What were you saying about Clint?”

Natasha smirked and shook her head. “Oh no, you can’t distract me now. What did loverboy Stark send you?”

While Natasha was talking, Pepper’s phone buzzed again, indicating another text.

_Tony:_  
_Don’t let Nat push you around too much, okay?_

_Pepper:_  
_The dog is adorable, and I guess you are too_  
_Why would I let Nat push me around? I’ve handled her for this long…_

_Tony:_  
_I just wanted an excuse to text you._  
_I was thinking of you_  
_And I miss you_

Before Pepper could reply, Natasha plucked the phone from her hand. “Hey!”

Natasha started reading through the texts and gave an _‘Awww…’_ and smirked at Pepper. Pepper just rolled her eyes, moving from her spot to try and reach over to Natasha to grab her phone, but Natasha lept from the couch and ran to put the chair Hope and Carol were sharing between her and Pepper.

“What’d Tony say?” Carol asked, trying not to laugh at her friends.

Natasha held Pepper’s phone up again. “He sent a picture of him and a puppy, using it as an excuse to text her, then went on to tell her he was thinking of her and missed her dearly and was counting down the minutes until he could see her again.”

Pepper jumped up and chased Natasha while everyone else just laughed and awed. “You’re exaggerating and you know it, Nat,” Pepper laughed, chasing her friend through the house.

Natasha dived over the back of the couch, landing with an _oomph_ as Pepper dived after her. The two friends wrestled over the phone for a moment before Pepper managed to grab it and cry out in triumph. She gave Natasha a friendly shove off the couch with a huff and situated herself comfortably on the couch again.

Natasha decided to just lay on the floor and turned over onto her back. “Either way, you can’t deny the fact that he wanted to text you just because he was thinking about you.”

Pepper gave a smile and shrugged. “And that’s a bad thing why?”

“It’s not bad,” Hope jumped in, “but it is adorable, especially considering it’s Tony.”

Carol nodded. “This is the same Tony who’s never seemed to put this much effort into a relationship before.”

“It sounds like he’s already in love with you,” Wanda added.

Pepper blushed. “I don’t know about _that_.”

Natasha moved back onto the couch and gave Pepper’s shoulder a squeeze. “Deny it all you want, but that boy is already head over heels in love with you, Pep. He has been since the moment he laid eyes on you.”

Pepper just shook her head and moved the topic passed her and Tony, while silently arguing with herself about if her boyfriend of two months already loved her, and if she was starting to feel the same.

* * *

A couple weeks later, Pepper watched the rain pour down outside of Honest Charlie’s while she slowly wiped down the front counter. It had been storming since she started her shift, and today seemed to be one of the slow rainy days. At a coffee shop, it could be a toss up whether it would be packed because of the rain or slow because of it, and today seemed to be the latter.

Natasha was in the back, taking inventory of their supplies for Happy, while Pepper was cleaning up the counter and front of the coffee bar. At the sound of the door opening, Pepper looked up to find a delivery man coming in.

“Is there a ‘Pepper Potts’ here?” The man asked, reading off his order sheet.

Pepper nodded and cleared her throat. “That’s me,” she said while she caught Natasha and Happy coming out from the back.

The delivery man nodded and ran back to his van. The man returned with a large vase of yellow and red-yellow tulips. He carried them over and set them right in front of Pepper. “These are for you. Have a good day.”

Pepper gave an absent acknowledgement to the man, but her gaze never left the flowers. The only other time she’d seen that type of color-mixed tulips was when Tony gave them to her on their first date. Ignoring her friend and boss, she found a little card tucked away in the stems and leaves and reached forward to pull it out. Sure enough, the flowers were from Tony, and he even left a little message on the white card for her.

_“Since the sun can’t shine for you right now, hopefully these flowers will brighten your day - T.S.”_

Pepper couldn’t help but smile at the note. She really did have the best boyfriend. They talk as often as they can and try to go out at least once a week. She’s never had a relationship feel as natural as this one, and truly, Pepper can’t find a reason to complain. Not only has she gained an amazing boyfriend since moving to Malibu, but she’s also gained a strong group of friends that have started to feel like her family.

Suddenly a hand came over her shoulder and plucked the note out of her hand. “Hey!” Pepper whirled around and saw Natasha smirking and holding the little card. Pepper moved to grab it but Natasha was fast and dashed around to the front side of the counter.

Natasha looked at it and grinned. “He really sent you flowers?”

Pepper couldn’t help the smile on her face. “Apparently so.” Tony wasn’t wrong either. It seems like his flowers _had_ brightened her day.

Natasha looked at her friend. “I know you denied it before, but this is just more proof of how much he loves you.”

Pepper looked at the flowers again. “I don’t think so. They’re just flowers.”

Natasha shook her head. “Didn’t you say he gave you red and yellow tulips on your first date and that you secretly loved them?”

“Yeah,” Pepper said, “and?”

Natasha rolled her eyes. “Not only did he send regular yellow tulips, he also added those same flowers! That means he noticed your reaction and remembered it! And it shows he cared and wanted to make you happy by sending them!”

Pepper shrugged. “He’s just being a good boyfriend, Nat.” She didn’t tell her friend that as more time went on, Natasha’s argument of Tony already loving her didn’t seem so crazy.

* * *

2 years have passed and Pepper and Tony are still going strong. Tony’s little tech company has skyrocketed in both business and popularity because of the tech he’s released for the public to use to make life easier. His inventions keep investors happy and their wallets open, and the consumers asking for more.

When Stark Industries started gaining notoriety quickly, Tony realised he couldn’t manage it all on his own, so he brought Pepper in as the business manager and partner. The public flipped when they learned that the good-looking and up-and-coming business owner/inventor wasn’t single and decided to bring his ‘secret’ girlfriend into the business. This meant that Pepper was quickly thrown into the spotlight, right next to Tony. It didn’t bother her too much though, because she maintained the thought that as long as she had Tony by her side, they could handle anything together.

As disappointing as it was to learn that Tony wasn’t available, people seemed to love the new power-couple, as they were starting to be called. Everyone thought they were perfect together and loved anytime they were seen together. It certainly made it harder for them to go out on dates or go out with their friends, but they made it work.

Speaking of friends, Pepper wasn’t the only one of their mashed-up group of friends to join Stark Industries. Natasha hired herself as Pepper and Tony’s assistant soon after Tony brought Pepper on. Their friend claimed that neither had the capability to fully manage their professional and personal lives without help from someone who really knew both of them. Thus Natasha and Pepper both left Honest Charlie’s and transitioned to Stark Industries.

The coffee shop lost some of its employees, but Happy never lost his customers. Their whole group made sure to stop by as often as they could for coffee and to catch up with the man who has become akin to their grumpy but lovable uncle.

Bruce and Betty both worked at Stark Industries too. Tony hired them as research heads in his R&D department, in their own fields of study of course. Hope worked with Pepper in the business side of it, charming investors and business partners alike, while her boyfriend Scott helped with cyber security, partnering with the company that Rhodey worked for to deal with the physical security.

Tony was building his legacy, but while he was doing that, he was also creating his own version of family, keeping his friends and girlfriend as close as possible in both work and their social lives. Pepper knew that was what her boyfriend was doing and couldn’t help but fall a little more in love with him.

Tony walked through the door of his penthouse apartment and tossed his keys on the little table by the door. “Pep? I’m finally back!”

“In here!”

Tony smiled and made his way down the hallway to the bedrooms in the back. He made it to the one at the very end of the hall and leaned against the doorframe. “Whatcha’ doin’ Sweetheart?”

Pepper looked up from the desk they put there to make it a home office for the couple. “Just thought I’d finish up some work before getting ready for tonight.”

Tony pushed himself off the frame and sauntered over to his girlfriend. Pepper turned the chair to face him and he took that as permission to lean down and box her in. “Well, it’s a good thing I interrupted you then, cause we don’t have much time before we need to leave.”

Pepper smirked as she watched her boyfriend lean closer to her. Without warning, she popped up to meet him in the middle with a kiss. “I guess so,” she replied before giving Tony a shove so she could get out of the chair.

Her boyfriend didn’t move until she winked at him while leaving the room. That made him very quickly rush after her into their bedroom. Tony was only a step behind Pepper when instead of making a move towards the bed like he thought, she just laughed and opened the closet.

“You did say we had to get ready for tonight,” she giggled when she caught his look of confusion, “So go get ready!”

Tony groaned but couldn’t stop the smile from growing on his face. He loved that Pepper agreed to move in with him when he asked her six months ago. It’s completely changed his life for the better, and enjoys every minute of it, even times when Pepper teased him like that.

He moved to the bathroom to jump in the shower before changing into his tux for the night. There was a gala that Stark Industries was invited to, and as the head of the company, Tony, and by extension, Pepper, were expected to make an appearance.

An hour or so later, Tony was straightening his tie in the hall mirror while he waited for Pepper to come out. He checked his watch to make sure they wouldn’t be late before going to the kitchen to grab a couple bottles of water for them for the way there. “Pep! We need to get going or we’re going to be late,” he called towards their room. He knew that his girlfriend took pride in her appearance, especially when it was for the company, but even Tony ran out of patience every once in a while.

He heard the bedroom door open and the tell-tale sound of heels on the wooden floor as Pepper joined him by the front door. The second Tony caught a glimpse of Pepper, all his earlier impatience was gone. He stood still, mouth open in shock as he stared at his beautiful girlfriend. She was in a dark blue dress that reached the floor, but when she turned around, Tony’s eyes widened at the sight of her bare back. _She’s beautiful_ , he thought, still unable to form a coherent sentence out loud.

Pepper turned back around towards him and smirked when she caught his expression. “Cat got your tongue, Mr. Stark?”

Tony caught sight of the necklace she was wearing with the dress, and realized it was the same silver necklace he got her for her birthday last year. At her teasing remark, he shook himself from his thoughts and swallowed. “Honestly Pep,” he answered, “I’m stunned.” He walked forward and caught her hand, pulling her into his arms. “You are so stunning,” he whispered, staring right into her eyes, hoping to convey the sheer amount of love and awe he felt for her.

Pepper must’ve seen at least some of it, because she just gave him a gentle smile and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

Tony laughed as they moved apart. He helped Pepper into a light jacket and grabbed his car keys. “Come on, we need to go now or we’ll never get there.”

Pepper laughed and followed her boyfriend out the door and down to the car. On the ride there, Pepper looked over Tony’s outfit, once again appreciating that this amazing man is her boyfriend. “I like the blue tie. Is it new?”

Tony briefly glanced down at his tie before focusing back on the road. “Yeah, Rhodey and I were out when I saw it and I just couldn’t leave without it.”

“Why?” Pepper asked, “Is blue suddenly your favorite color?”

Tony pulled up at a stoplight and turned to give her a smile. “This tie is important because it’s color matches your eyes. It might just become my favorite color though.”

Pepper stared at him, blown away. He found a blue tie he liked just because it matched her eyes? And he decided to wear it around the press? Pepper didn’t know what to say, so she just smiled and relaxed in the passenger seat as he kept driving.

* * *

They arrived only slightly late, but still had to make it through the red carpet and all the press. The couple plastered on their smiles for the cameras and tried to ignore as many questions that were thrown at them as they could. Eventually they made it inside and both grabbed a flute of champagne, sipping them as they took in the scene.

“We’ll have to make sure to talk to potential business partners and investors while we’re here. It’d be a waste not to,” Pepper said, looking around at the people already dancing, talking, or drinking and snacking on the finger foods being brought around by the catering staff.

“Sure, but first,” Tony said, suddenly pulling Pepper onto the dance floor, where people were already slow dancing to the music, “let’s dance a little.”

Pepper gave a small and startled yelp, but didn’t fight her boyfriend as he pulled her close and started swaying in time with the music. She smiled and shook her head as Tony gave her a wink and a smug smile. She just sighed and let her head fall and rest against his own head.

Eventually they pulled apart and made their way around to schmooze and charm with other business people, but any chance that Tony found, he’d pull Pepper back into his arms and sway together on the dance floor. Honestly, Pepper couldn’t think of night she’s enjoyed so much in a while. As long as Tony was there to hold her close, Pepper knew that life would always be great.

* * *

Pepper giggled as she blindly followed Tony. Her boyfriend of 3 years had blindfolded her and was now leading her to some surprise he had set up. “Tony,” she laughed, “can’t you just tell me where we’re going? Or at least let me see where I’m walking?”

Tony just shook his head, knowing full well Pepper couldn’t see the action. “Then it wouldn’t be a surprise anymore. Don’t you trust me, Pep?”

“I’m following you with a blindfold on, aren’t I?”

Tony just laughed, but still refused to tell her where he was bringing them. After several more minutes of silence, broken by Tony giving an occasional comment to Pepper about watching her step (Yes, _he knew the irony in that statement, Pepper. He isn’t a genius for no reason_ ), Tony finally stopped and helped Pepper sit down before removing her blindfold.

Pepper blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light again, and gasped. Tony brought her to a little pavilion in the park near their apartment. It was dark out, but that hardly made a difference as everything was decked out in fairy lights. There was a fire burning in the fire pit, and next to it, close enough to enjoy the heat but far enough to avoid the ash and sparks, was a blanket with a picnic basket and food spread out on it.

She turned to look at Tony, still too shocked to really say anything, but he just took her hand and led her down to the food and fire. “Come on, let’s enjoy our dinner before the ants get to it.”

She followed him to the fire and sat down, still stunned at what Tony had put together. She let him make them both sandwiches, laughing when he tried tossing grapes into her mouth, then her tossing some to Tony, only to hit his eye rather than his mouth. They joked around as they ate, talking about anything that came to mind, except work. Soon after Tony hired Pepper at SI, they made a rule that work talk wasn’t allowed on their dates. It was one of the ways they tried to keep their private and work lives separate.

As the night wore on, the dinner and dessert were all eaten and moved off the blanket so the couple could lay down and look at the stars. Pepper was laying next to Tony, curled into his side with her head resting on his chest. “This was amazing, Tony,” she whispered, moving so she could look at him rather than the sky.

Tony smiled and reached up to tuck a loose strand of hair behind Pepper’s ear. “You deserve the best, my love,” he answered. He moved to sit up, bringing Pepper with him. “Although, I will admit that this fireside date came with more intentions than just a nice night out.”

Pepper watched her boyfriend fumble around his jacket, apparently trying to find something. Tony looked up at her and smiled, his eyes full of love. “There was something else I wanted to ask you, while we are here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you guys think? Did you catch the references to the lines in the song? There's only one line missing in this chapter. Do you know which it is?
> 
> Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! I love hearing feedback and your ideas for what's going on. 
> 
> Have a great day!


	6. Get This Right

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm not dead! If you want the full explanation of what's been going on in my life, head on over to my other story: Learn to Live Again. You'll know everything there. 
> 
> Anyways, here's the long awaited chapter 6! This one is based on the song Get This Right from the Frozen 2 soundtrack. I'd highly recommend listening to it before or while you're reading this chapter. Enjoy!

_Pepper watched her boyfriend fumble around his jacket, apparently trying to find something. Tony looked up at her and smiled, his eyes full of love. “There was something else I wanted to ask you, while we are here.”_

Pepper waited, wondering what Tony wanted to ask her. He seemed preoccupied with whatever was in his jacket pocket, though, leaving her waiting in anticipation. “What did you want to ask me, Tony?” She finally said, breaking the tense silence.

Tony looked back up at her, his eyes wide. He gave a nervous chuckle and ran his hand through his hair, ruffling it more than it already was. Before he could speak, there was an ominous rumble in the skies, then with no warning, the heavens opened and a downpour started.

Pepper shrieked and they both jumped up, shocked to be suddenly soaked. The fire was instantly extinguished and their blankets and clothes were just as wet. Tony grabbed her hand and scooped up their things before running to the closest shelter, a gazebo a little farther down the hill. They sprinted up the steps and stopped once they were out of the rain. Pepper took one look at her soaked boyfriend and started laughing at the absurdity of the situation. Soon Tony couldn’t help but join in and then they were both double over, laughing.

Once they calmed down and dried off as much as they could, Pepper looked over at her boyfriend, who had pulled her into his side to keep her warm while they waited the storm out. “Tony?”

He hummed and looked over at her. “Yeah?”

“What were you going to ask me earlier?”

He took a deep breath. “Well…. I mean,” he stuttered for a moment. “This is all on me,” he said. “This isn’t the timing or place I imagined this happening.” Tony removed his arm from her shoulder and started pacing. He was terrified to finally ask her, especially after the weeks of planning have seemed to go down the drain with the surprise storm. Maybe he could get out of answering her and just pretend nothing was going to happen.

“I love you, Pep,” he started, “but honestly, you could do so much better than me. Why did you choose me?”

Pepper just smiled, reaching out to catch his hands as he passed her in his nervous pacing. “Because for me, there’s no one better, Tony. You’re who I want to be with. What brought this on?”

Tony couldn’t help but kiss her cheek, before pulling back. “Because I wanted to do all of this right! You deserve so much and I want to be the best for you. I want to be the man you deserve to be with,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “I want to thrill you, sweep you off your feet, I’m just too nervous to do anything to prove it to you.”

Pepper took a step toward him. “Tony,” she started, but he held out his hand.

“No, let me finish, otherwise I’ll never get through this,” he said.

Tony turned, giving her a smile. “I want to make you swoon, Pep. I want to rock you with my romance.” She gave a laugh, but let him continue, seeing some of his confidence slowly come back.

“I wanted to set the perfect mood,” he continued, “but I’m so nervous I think I’d be sweating through my clothes if they weren’t wet from the rain!”

“Tony, there’s nothing to be nervous about,” Pepper tried to comfort him. He just shook his head and started patting around his jacket again.

“You don’t understand, Pepper,” Tony said. “I had it all planned out! I thought I might read a poem, maybe play a little music on my phone, I even have a ring!” Before Pepper could react to that little fact, her boyfriend shrugged his jacket off and threw it on a bench beside him, “Which I had apparently forgotten to bring with me to our dinner!” He held his head in his hands and groaned. He just shook his head. “You know what, we don’t have to do this tonight. Obviously I can’t get anything right tonight.”

Pepper chased after Tony as he started towards their pile of soggy belongings. “Tony! Wait, tonight’s not ruined! I promise!” She grabbed his arm and pulled so he had to turn and face her.

He reached up and cupped her cheek with one of his hands. He couldn’t believe how much he loved this woman, and how much she seemed to love him back. “Are you sure?”

Pepper just nodded, leaning a little into his hand. She brought one of her up to cover his. “Yes, Tony. I promise. The night isn’t ruined at all.”

Tony sighed and leaned in to kiss her. He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead on hers. “I’d never been in love before I met you,” he whispered. “I was a socially awkward inventor trying to start a business and really only had like three friends, one being my roommate, who was the only reason I had the other two friends,” he chuckled, wiping a stray raindrop from Pepper’s face. “He forced me out of my workshop to socialize, but I would always leave as soon as I could. That meant I wasn’t the best when it came to wooing women.”

Pepper just smiled, letting her fingers run through the hair on the nape of Tony’s neck. “Well, you could’ve fooled me,” she whispered back, not wanting to ruin the moment. “Consider me wooed.”

Tony let out a breathy laugh and closed his eyes. “I’m scared, Pep. I don’t want to blow this but I don’t know what to do. I’m so lucky to have you in my life. You’re perfect. You’re gorgeous, brilliant, funny, loving, you don’t give up on people,” he opened his eyes and smiled, “even crazy geniuses.”

Pepper couldn’t help but lean up and kiss him. She loved him so much, she didn’t know how to handle it. “I don’t think I’d ever been in love before you either,” she said, “because the love I feel for you is so intense and nothing I have ever felt before.”

Tony pulled Pepper in and held her tightly against him. “I want to get this right for you, baby,” he said. “I want to love you as best that I can. I want to be the best man for you. I want to shout my love from the rooftops and write it in the sky.” He released her and took a step back.

“Pepper Potts, I love you with all my might.” He slowly knelt down on one knee. “Even though I don’t have a ring with me, and the night has gone completely sideways, I want to prove to you that I can be the man you deserve. So, will you marry me?”

Pepper couldn’t even speak, she just nodded. Tony leapt up and swept her into his arms, spinning her around as they kissed. Pepper let out a laugh and hid her face in the crook of his neck. “You didn’t mess anything up, baby,” Pepper murmured, giving little kisses over Tony’s neck and up his jawline. “You got it just right,” she whispered before kissing her fiance one more time.

Tony couldn’t stop smiling. “As long as we’re together baby,” Tony started.

“We’re going to get this right,” Pepper finished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, it's a little shorter and not my favorite chapter, but it's here. Let me know what you think in the comments below!
> 
> There's one or two chapters left, so we're wrapping up this Pepperony love story soon. Have a great day!

**Author's Note:**

> What do you think so far? Let me know in the comments below! 
> 
> Have a great day, and everyone stay safe! Wash your hands!


End file.
